Stars Can't Remedy Weak `Medicine'

February 07, 1992|By MALCOLM JOHNSON; Courant Film Critic

Those faced with choosing between the two Amazon pictures on view this weekend should opt for the other one.

While "Medicine Man" clearly has its heart in saving the rain forest, its brain is stuck in that place where Hollywood formulas are stillborn. Pairing Sean Connery (also the executive producer) and Lorraine Bracco as two biochemical geniuses deep in the jungle apparently is intended to add up to a new variation on Tracy and Hepburn. But with all the treetop amusement park rides and the lame dialogue, this new romance from action direction John McTiernan ("Die Hard") plays like a superannuated "Tarzan" adventure. Only in its final 15 minutes or so does the story catch fire. Even McTiernan's last foray into the jungle in the ho-hum "Predator" generated more excitement and intellectual stimulation.

Tom Schulman, who devised the story and co-wrote the screenplay with Sally Robinson, opens with what is supposed to be a comical voyage into a tropical wilderness for the businesslike scientist played by a newly blond Bracco. After being carted from the airport by relatively civilized means, Bracco's Dr. Rae Crane is unceremoniously told that the rest of the trek must be covered on foot. Torrential soakings and rain forest pratfalls follow, humorlessly.

At last, after a long dugout ride, the poor doctor arrives at her remote destination. There she espies some dancing Indians, apparently preparing for an ethno-ballet tour of North America. Suddenly she is confronted by a giant figure in a toucan mask bristling with straw. When it speaks, it is with a boozy Scottish brogue. Thus does our producer-star make his entrance.

After being ungallantly treated to a night in the elements, wrapped in a poncho, Dr. Crane awakens to deal with the legendary Dr. Robert Campbell. Not all that surprisingly, he is put out that the company sponsoring his research saw fit to send a woman to his outpost of progress. Much one-upmanship over credentials follows, tiresomely.

The two-character movie harrumphs along, with him asking her to leave and her preparing to do so. Then he unveils the results of his long retreat in the jungle. Miraculously, he has discovered a cure for cancer, which he proceeds to document and even to

demonstrate. From now on, Dr. Crane is hooked, of course, and Dr. Campbell begins to appreciate her, even giving her a nickname: "Brooklyn." "I'm from the Bronx," she retorts.

Dialogue seemingly concocted while under the influence of the apricot pernod favored by Campbell bogs down "Medicine Man" at every point. But even the flattest exchanges sparkle with invention compared with the turns of the plot, which centers on a dwindling supply of the serum and Campbell's failure to duplicate his anti-cancer miracle cure, derived from a treetop bromeliad. The dullest high-school chemistry student will guess the missing ingredient faster than our two Nobel candidates.

The repartee and the biochemical chats provide little opportunity for Connery and Bracco to shine, but once the initial witlessness is past, they are both likeable enough. Sporting a trim gray beard and a flowing clump of a pony tail, Connery makes Campbell a mildly humorous Scot with a dour, brooding side and a taste for the local brew. Changing outfits and even bathing before the cameras, Bracco shows Crane has a feminine side, along with her scientific credentials. But even Tracy and Hepburn were more physical in their attractions than these two pharmaceutical wizards. No chemistry here.

With its treetop rides on surprisingly sophisticated systems of lifts and cable runs, this romance nearly blossoms in mid-air like some mating between Oberon and Titania.

But the foolish mortals are overshadowed by the sweeping vistas in Donald McAlpine's camera-work, accompanied by lush love themes by Jerry Goldsmith. Then it's down to earth again to plod along to the obvious chemistry lesson and the tragic climax that brings, for a moment, a sobering meaning to the otherwise frivolous "Medicine Man."

Rated PG-13, this film contains much nudity, some strip teases for Bracco and a few moments of brutal violence for Connery.

Film review MEDICINE MAN, directed by John McTiernan; screenplay by Tom Schulman and Sally Robinson, based on a story by Schulman; director of photography, Donald McAlpine; music composed by Jerry Goldsmith; production designer, John Krenz Reinhart, Jr.; edited by Michael R. Miller; produced by Andrew G. Vajna and Donna Dubrow; executive producer, Sean Connery. A Buena Vista Distribution release of a Hollywood Pictures Production, in association with Cinergi Productions Inc. and Cinergi Productions N.V., opening today at Showcase Cinemas, East Hartford and Berlin. Running time: 104 minutes.